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Howard Webb: Tottenham’s Alli Must Be Careful in Euros

By Alexander Balano

ENFIELD, ENGLAND - APRIL 21: Dele Alli smiles during a Tottenham Hotspur training session at the Tottenham Hotspur Training Centre on April 21, 2016 in Enfield, England. (Photo by Tottenham Hotspur FC/Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images)
ENFIELD, ENGLAND - APRIL 21: Dele Alli smiles during a Tottenham Hotspur training session at the Tottenham Hotspur Training Centre on April 21, 2016 in Enfield, England. (Photo by Tottenham Hotspur FC/Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images) /
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Former referee Howard Webb has warned Tottenham Hotspur’s Dele Alli ahead of England’s match against Russia on Saturday in the hope that the 20-year-old won’t be sent off with a red card.

Because of Dele Alli’s dour ending to his debut season with Tottenham resulting in a three-match ban to close out the 2015-16 Premier League campaign — which was building up for some time now, with incidents that could have seen the midfielder be red carded or suspended during the middle of the year — Alli has a tendency to be wound up easily.

Related Story: Dele Alli: England Can Adopt Tottenham's Mentality for Euros

As a 20-year-old footballer who has risen to superstar level, not world-class yet (hopefully soon though), Alli is already one of Spurs and England’s best young prospects. So you could forgive his behavior on the pitch at times.

He could be cheeky, but he means no harm… unless you wind him up.

This is something that Howard Webb believes will be a major difference at the European Championship. How the referees in an international tournament tend to call games differently than at the club level.

"“The difference in the way games in the Premier League and on the Continent are refereed has got smaller over the years, but England still need to be careful to avoid getting penalised for things they would get away with for their clubs,” Webb wrote in The Times (via ESPN FC).“Peter Crouch used to struggle in Europe because his arms and legs would be going everywhere. Jamie Vardy might have to adjust his style a little bit so he doesn’t get penalised when he’s trying to get past the last man.”“And of course Dele Alli needs to be careful. He’s got a bit of a temperament, which can be a good thing, but referees won’t hesitate to send him off if he reacts.”"

LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 25: Dele Alli of Tottenham Hotspur argues with Claudio Yacob of West Bromwich Albion as referee Mike Jones intervenes during the Barclays Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and West Bromwich Albion at White Hart Lane on April 25, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Morton/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 25: Dele Alli of Tottenham Hotspur argues with Claudio Yacob of West Bromwich Albion as referee Mike Jones intervenes during the Barclays Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and West Bromwich Albion at White Hart Lane on April 25, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Morton/Getty Images) /

Dele Alli wasn’t sent off for two yellow cards or a straight red for reacting the way he has done throughout last season. However it’s apparent that his attitude could be something to watch out for moving forward.

People might be divided on where they stand with regards to Dele Alli’s mean streak. Some like it because he doesn’t stand down from anybody. While others perhaps believe he needs to tone it down or he could end up hurting his team whether that’s Tottenham — as evidenced by his three-match ban — or England if he is potentially sent off this summer.

For Mauricio Pochettino, he has drawn a fine line in that he won’t actively seek to change how his players play but he will remind them to not do anything stupid that could hurt everyone.

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Here’s Webb continuing on about the subject of players who have been wound up won’t be reprimanded immediately, but any retaliation from other players will be handled appropriately (see: Tottenham versus Chelsea on May 2nd).

"“What often happens is that the first bit of winding-up won’t be spotted but the retaliation will be — you saw that with David Beckham’s flick at Diego Simeone in the 1998 World Cup and Wayne Rooney’s stamp on Ricardo Carvalho in 2006.”“Referees won’t duck out of making a decision to send someone off if they do react. There is no excuse for players not knowing what they won’t be able to get away with.”"

A more recent example of referees quickly sending a player out of the match would be Bruno Alves’ ill-advised kick to Harry Kane in England’s final warm-up match before they face Russia this Saturday. That type of challenge no doubt was a red card — that’s not even debatable — but it backs up what Howard Webb is saying: referees won’t hesitate to send someone off.

So what should England do with Dele Alli? Will Roy Hodgson advise the Tottenham man to change how he plays? That’s one way to go about it, but maybe it’s best to just let Alli be himself. If he’s wound up too easily, then he’ll have to learn how to control himself much better.

Alan Smith a former teammate of Alli with MK Dons and formerly of Leeds United and Manchester United, says that he has to keep his aggressive streak. Smith believes Dele Alli’s aggressiveness is one way that he could make an impact in France once the Euros begin.

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"“You don’t want to take away the aggression Dele has got because it is a massive part of his game,” Smith said (via Daily Mirror).“You wouldn’t want him to lose that aggression and style. He takes no prisoners and he wants to win.”“His mentality is of a driven person. It is about the balance, for me sometimes you can take away from the player and what makes him good if you are not careful.”“If you go out thinking about it, it is probably taking away a bit more from your game. I am sure everybody in the squad knows what he is like and wants him to go out and express himself.”“He has been given the freedom to do that and I think that is why everyone has seen the best of him.”"

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